Takeover consortium gets extension in its pursuit of Intu
The consortium has until the middle of November to make a firm offer for JSE-listed Intu Properties
A consortium led by UK billionaire John Whittaker has been given two more weeks by the board of Intu Properties to make a firm offer for the under performing real estate company. If the takeover goes ahead fresh management will likely be brought in to turn around the London Stock Exchange and JSE listed company which has a significant South African shareholding. According to Evan Robins, portfolio manager at Old Mutual Investment Group, Whittaker and his team are trying to take control of Intu so that they can bring in new management that will get strong returns form Intu’s highly rated portfolio, which includes the top 10 malls in the UK and strong malls in Spanish tourist towns. He added that a two-week extension would not necessarily make a takeover more likely but it would allow the consortium to raise more funds and come up with a higher offer if it wished to. “I think shareholders have expected Intu’s management to change in the next few months. [CEO David] Fischel, who is one...
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